Drum-type feed control



2 Sheets-She et 1 0 mu MM J. WEGNER DRUM-TYPE FEED CONTROL Filed Jan.11, 1949 March 7, 1950 March 7, 1950 J. WEGNER DRUM-TYPE FEED CONTROL 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 11. 1949 INVENTOR.

reea comrb box mountetl on Patented Mar. 7, 1950 UNITED. STATES PATENTOFFICE 2,499,804 Diana-TYPE FEiiDboN'rReL Julius Wegner, Flushing, N Y.Application January 11, 1949, Serial No. 70,16'0

sioiaims. (CL-125546) 1 This invention relates broadly to "etone" sawingor cutting machines and more particularly to feeding mechanisms forintermittently lowering or feeding the s'aw bla'de's into the stone tobe cut. Thestructure of these sawing machines, called gang saws in thetrade, usually consists of a 5 frame, which carries a sash -in=-which'any'nuiriber of -saw blades 5 from a few" to a few hundred maybemounted. U The sash' fr'ame may he operated "in anumberof'difier'entways; suchas, for instance, bymeans of a crank shaftand 'acoiinecting 'rod.

For the purpose of cutting through a stoneslab, the sash frame, carryingthe saw blades, is suc- "cessively lowered. Heretofore, the lowering of2 ?and includes" a pair of slidable bevel gears adap to"heselectivelymeshed byhand with another bevel gear for changing the eccentric 'throwol' a slide associated with thefeed edntrol mechanism.

" A connecting-rod is provided rortransmitmig the the sash frame orthefeedingof the sawblades into the stone has been accomplishedeither'Iiy-a separate drive, which operated thefeedingscrews ofthe sashframe, or the feeding niechanismha's been interconnected with themaind'rive -of {the machine, such as the crank shaft, thus operating thefeeding screws intermittently by means of gear trains, ratchets, orsimilar arrangements.

The drawback of thelatter' arrangenienthas fbeen that the adjustment ofthe rate of 'reewhas been very cumbersome and necessitated"eithershutting down these gang saws altogether, which, besides aninevitableloss of time, "was likely to result in an uneven cut "throughthe stone-slab, or'the operator had to climb up to'thetop of the "gangsaw in order 'to'readjust the feed, whichfis 0 "an inconvenientaswell*as a dangerous task.

Actuating the sash feed hy means of gearing, ratchets, and the like, of'courseflimits theTa'te of feed to certain'multiples of a given feed.Cons'equently, the operator "would never *a'djust 'the 'most'efiicientfeeding rateg'and to prevent n "mi'ng the saw blades and doingother-damage withtoorapid a feeding rate, the operator hasa naturaltendency to setthe'feed ofthe'sash frame "at a slow enoughrate toobviate these calamities under any and all circumstances.

"The need has been felt in the trade-for many years for a sash framefeed which could 1) be ad-justedby the operatorwith convenience-and.5145

without danger while the sawisin operationgand which 2) would allow 'a-stepless adjustment-of the feed to'obtain maximum-output regardless-0fthe relative hardness of the stoneto-be cut.

In my 'co-pending application Serial No.

949, there is --'i-llusg "saws" which ever: ov'el hemes thes" anaemia"'ecc'entrie motion of-saidslide'to a system ofcr aiik arm's, which actby means ofconnecting -ba'-rs'-"6n 'apair of ratchet devices.

Thepr'esent invention represents a further iin- "proveinent in such feedcontrols 'for gang saws'. "While the aforementioned feed control hasteen found efficient and practical, itsapplication *to "the multitude"of difierent designs of old g'an sa'ws'necessitatesthe use of aconsiderable number of parts which mustlbe made and fitted especially'for each'such machine.

"The present invention overcomes thisa'ii'd other objections 'in thatthe feed controlunitds contained within a rotatable drum or "pulley,which may-be located near the ratchet devices and may be drive'n by achain or belt from "any rotating member 'of the gang saw. There ore,differences in center distance, for instance, between the driving"member-and the driven "ed control drum, asfound'in gang saws of diffent designs, present no difliculties, because "in The present inventionit is only necessary to the lengths of standard chains or belts. Thenewgang saw feed is, therefore, adapted to be made in standardizedunits'and is preferably mounted on the *gangsaw structure in closeproximitylto the sash frame feeding mechanism, usually placed nearthetop of-the gang saw. I

It is another feature of the present invention to provide a feedco'ntrol device of the character described --inc1uding adjusting meanswhich may be'inexpensively adapted to be actuated fromfthe operators'natural working 'position, regardless of the height at which the feedcontrol device is mounted.

Another object --is to prov-idea 'feed control mechanismwhich isfoolproof becausetheop era-tor need not' -be near any moving or-=-ro-tatin'g member when adjusting the rateof feed,: -a1id whereinoperating gears are employed which are in constant mesh, combinationwith braking means for actuating said operating-gears selectively toincrease or decrease the rate of feed.

The" foregoing and other features of novel constructionin the 'improved"gang saw "feeding f-dfawin saw in which the novel sash feedingmechanism is incorporated;

Fig. 2 is a plan view, showing the sash feeding mechanism depicted inFig. 1 and part of the gang saw proper;

Fig. 3 illustrates the spring-lifted brakes in greater detail, whichserve for selectively adjusting the feed control mechanism;

Fig. 4 shows a view along line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of the novel feed control devicemounted in the drumlike housing;

Fig. 6 shows a right-hand front view of the feed control device in thedirection of arrows 6--6 in Fig. 5 with the cover partly broken away.

Gcmg saw proper Referrin to the general assembly shown in Figs. 1 and 2of the drawings, the gang saw proper is illustrated more or lessdiagrammatically because it will be understood that the improved sashfeeding mechanism may be used and adapted to any type of gang saw. Themain frame of the gang saw is formed by vertical beams or columns ll,interconnected by cross beams l2. A sash frame or sash |3 of anyconventional design is mounted in said main frame or main structure andmay be horizontally guided by slides l4. Sash |3 may be reciprocated byany suitable means, such as connecting rod l5, pivotally secured to sashframe l3 and actuated by means of crankshaft l6, as shown. Crankshaft l6carries flywheels l1 and I8, which latter is usually driven by flat beltor similar means by a prime mover, such as an electric motor (notshown).

As the sash frame l3, which may carry any required number of saws, isreciprocated, it is intermittently and progressively lowered to feed thesaws into the stone to be cut. The means shown as an example comprisevertical threaded spindles l9, which are journalled in bearings 20,supported by the uprights II and guide plates 2|, threaded on saidspindles l9, which carry at their upper ends bevel gears 22 in mesh withbevel gears 23 on shafts 24. All spindles l9 are driven in synchronismby means of said bevel gears 22, 23, and additional bevel gears 25, whenshafts 24 are rotated.

The gang saw, as briefly described above, is identical to the one shownin my co-pending application Serial No. 756,124, filed June 21, 1947,now Patent No. 2,478,957, issued August 16, 1949 and is of altogetherconventional design. It does not form part of the present invention.

Sash frame feed Feed control drum 26 houses an instantaneouslyadjustable crank and is carried by stationary outside sleeve 21, whichmay be fastened by bolts or the like to the structural frame of the gangsaw or some auxiliary structure 28, formed by timbers or the like (Figs.1 and 2). The feed control drum 26 is driven by any suitable means, suchas a chain or a belt 29 and pulley 36, fast to crankshaft l6. Connectingrods 3| and 32 are provided to transmit the eccentric motion created bycrank or slide 33 of the feed control drum 26 to ratchet devices orone-way clutches 34 and 35, respectively, in the manner shown. Theseone-way clutches are mounted on clutch shaft 36, which is journalled inbearings 31 and 38, respectively, supported by the machine proper or bythe auxiliary structure 28. Clutch shaft 36 also carries pinion 39 inmesh with gear 40 on main :feed shaft 4|. The latter is journalled in.bearings 42 and-'43.

Gear 46, whose hub 44 may form one-half of a jaw clutch, is freelyrotatable on shaft 4|, to which complementary clutch half 45 is slidablykeyed, so that member 45 may be brought into and out of engagement withclutch half 44 by means of a hand lever or other suitable arrangements(not shown). Shaft 4| also carries fast and loose pulleys 46 and 41.These pulleys are arranged for rapid adjustment of the sash frame l3 ina vertical direction. A separate drive is generally used for thispurpose, such as an electric motor with belt driving said pulleys 46 and41. When employing this rapid feed, jaw clutch 44-45 is in disengagedposition (as shown in Fig. 2), thereby rendering the work feed from feedcontrol drum '26 inoperative. The rotation of shaft 4 whether caused byfeed control drum 26 or by said rapid height adjustment, is transmittedto the several shafts 24 of the machine proper by means of gear 48, fastto shaft 4|, and pinion 49, fast to one of the feed shafts 24, as shown.As previously described, the sash frame I3 is thereby evenly lifted orlowered by means of vertical spindles 9. When the rapid heightadjustment is not to be used, the belt is shifted to the loose pulley,thereby rendering this auxiliary rapid feed means inoperative.

It is pointed out that the previously mentioned one-way clutches 34 and35 are of conventional design and can only impart clockwise rotation toshaft 36. Referring especially to Fig. 1, it will be seen thatconnecting rod 32, actuated by crank 33, is connected to an extension orarm of oneway clutch 35, which arm protrudes substantially above thecenter line of shaft 36. Hence, assuming crank 33 to be revolving inclockwise direction and to be at top dead center position at the instantdepicted in Fig. 1, it will be evident that clutch 35 is also rotatedclockwise around shaft 36. As one-way clutch 35 is designed so that itwill impart only clockwise rotation to shaft 36, the latter will berotated in clockwise direction at this instance. In fact, this clockwiseactuation of shaft 36 by clutch 35 will prevail substantially during thecomplete upper half of the crank throw of slide 33, namely, starting ata point about 90 degrees before the crank position shown in Fig. 1 andending at a point about 90 degrees after said top dead center positionof crank 33 shown in Fig. 1. It will also be noted in Fig. 1, that theother connecting rod 3|, also actuated from common crank 33, isconnected to an extension or arm of one-way clutch 34 which protrudessubstantially below the center line of shaft 36. Hence, at the top deadcenter position and clockwise rotation as viewed in Fig. 1 and aboutdescribed, said crank 33 will rotate one-way clutch 34 incounter-clockwise direction. Clutch 34, however, is of identical designas clutch 35 and can only impart clockwise rotation to shaft 36.Consequently, the clockwise rotation of crank 33 will at this particularinstant rotate clutch 34 in counter-clockwise direction and, therefore,clutch 34 will be freewheeling during the whole upper half of the crankthrow previously defined. During the lower half of the crank throw ofslide 33, conditions will obviously be reversed. Clutch 34 will berotated in clockwise direction and hence impart a second feeding impulseto shaft 36; clutch 35 will be rotated in counter-clockwise directionand, hence, will be free-wheeling. Thus, when the adjustable slide orcrank 33 of feed control drum 26 rotates, the one-way clutches 34 and 35will alternately rotate shaft 36 in clockwise direction. It will beunderstoodthat, by using two -ratchet 'devlces, "-34 of the gang sawarevactuatedttwice for eachrevo- 'Jlu'tion of said control "drum 26. Thisdoublefee'cl has'proven'veryadvantagerms in cutting certain grades ofstones and has increased the cutting brake to prevent any torsionalspringback of-ishaft "36 :which mightotherwise be causedbyitheelasvingthe double feed "cycle; Inotherwords'this double'feed cycle.

"therefore, done away'zwith.

"iently adjusted tojproduce any desired eccentriccannons-4 and "35,' thescrew 19 rate verywappreciably.

If it is desired-to :impart to the sash :frame ll 3 'onlyon'e'feedingmovement for eachrevolution of said drum 26, either :ofthe bars 3| or32- may be disconnected at the drum end and fastened to some stationarypart "of the structure. If her i3 l is disconnected from drum zfi,forinstance, oneway 1 clutch- 34 is rendered inoperative as regardsimparting rotation toshaft 36 but 'willa'ct asa tic deformation inJthevarious links offsaidIfeeding mechanism. It should also be observed thatthe freewheelingclutches will actsimilarly durdesign positivelyeliminates any undesirable torsionalspringback for the single as well'iasthe Feeding inaccuracies, such as found in conventional feedmechanisms, are,

.Feed control drum Referring 'to Figs. and 6, the feed. control device'23 is so arrangedthat it may be convenity from zero to'maximum, whilethegang'saw' is in operation. The feed control mechanism is mountedwithin a drum or housing-50, from which a suitable hub 5 9 extends forfasteningto a sleeve "52 by means of-setscrews 53 or'thelike. Wheneverpulley or 'drum'5ll is rotating,sleeve 52 will. participate in thisrotation. Bushings 54 and 55 are provided in outside sleeve21torotatablysupport sleeve'-52. Outside sleeve 2'! is providedwith pads 56,through'whichsuitable bolts may extend into the structure of-the-gangsawproper in order to support thefeed control device-26 withits'associated mechanisms. An adjusting spindle 51*is rotatably mountedin thrust bearing 58 and journalled in bearings "59"and'60. it has keyedtoit at its one end bevel-gear 6|, in mesh with bevel gear-62, fast toshaft 63;which is concentric to and rotatably carried by a sleeve 84. Abrake drum 65'is keyed to the endof shaft-63 and =located by threadednutBE. -Anotherbevel ge'ar' fi'l is also in mesh with bevel gear filpnspindleli'l and. is keyed 'to one end of the aforementioned sleeve -64,which carries'at its 'other'end a brake drum 53; keyed "orotherwise"fastened thereto.

Bushings 69 and'lt'rotatably support sleeve-B4. "The adjustable slide331s in threaded-engagement with spindle 5?.

A stub shaftl-l is threaded into slide 33 and carries th hubs of thepreviously mentioned'conne'cting bars 3| and3'2. 'A'washer 12 andthreaded nut 13 are provided-to position the aforementioned hubs.

It will be seen that, when spindle '51 is rotated,

slide 33 with its stub shaft ll may be eccentrically adjusted from thezero 'position'sh'own in'Tigs. 5

and 6. A suitable-opening M may be 'provid'edin cover '15, fastened tohousing 50 by" means :of screws, as indicated at 76, to allow thisradial adjustment of slide 33. The latter'comprises four arms Tl, 18,79,and 80. Circularrods 8! and 82 are mounted-in bosses 83 and-84,respectively, of housing 50. Saidrods 8i and 82 extend through suitablebores at th'e ends of arms 18,"-1 9and1'l,

Bil, respectively; for guidingthe 'slide 33am! for providing braking 'or'frictional clampingrsurfaces "for maintaining slide 33' in itszadjusted-xposition,

1:6 if n'otzactediuponibyispin'dle 51. 1T0varyltheztrictionalres'istancebetween rods-8:! and azzandethelrassociated .clamping aarm's :18, :19, and 11,180,1resp ectively, "therends of :said .arms arezslotteda'and Allen head isetlscrews85rareprovided to varylthe 'cl'amping'actionof thesetarmsaontrods fi l:and 82.

' able -slottedop'enin'gs 86 toifacilitate'tighteningrbf screwsi85 inany position offslidei'33 without removing'thec'over.

The feed control drum azfi'is -.usua'lly mounted at -a considerableheight.v Thereforaifan :indicator rod'il'l is shownto b'effas'ten'edtoonerofzthe hubs or the connectin'grods, such as torodc32, as shownin"Fi'g.5;by means ofsfork88land' pin 89. At its loweraend'rod '81is.freely-guidedin.element '90.."By "graduating the lowervend'of rod81,:as indicated at 9|, the operatorrhas'aconvenient 'checlr' at alltimes on the eccentricity-"of 'sli'de 33. Referring :now to Figs. 3 and4,1it-will be :seen that the brake bands '92 'Iandu93 :are "ordinarilylifted off "brake drums and :68 by the-action of springs Stand 95, whichmay beissupported by fa rod-96, :fast to structure .28. Chains 9'!and-98 'are fastened atone end to brake'ba'n'ds :921and 93,respectively, and at the oth'errencls'to a'double "crank hand lever 99,suitably pivoted on the'main structure of the machine. Fi'gs. 3.:a'nd'4'=show "this hand lever win n'eutral position,thus exerting'no pull oneitherof'thechains 9'if'or 98. However, by turning .lever 99 to 'theright from the position'illustrated' in Fig, :3, -chain 98 will bet1ghtened, a'nd brakeband 93 will'be brought in contact with itsassociated brake drum -38 against the 'tensionedispring 95, thustending: to ret-ard 'or stop the motion 3:01 this rbrake drum. Whenswinging 'hand lever 99 from-its neutral "position -to the left, :chain9'! willbe tightened, thus pressing brake band 92 in engagement with:brake' drum against the action of "spring 94. This'results in'retarding orstopping brake drum 65. It will thus beseen that, whentightening :brake band v92 by means of chain- 91, the other chain-2&8Wi1l-become loose, and viceversa. .This double crank hand :lever .99,therefore, serves :the rtwofold purpose of conveni'entlyuapplying abrakingaction to eitherof the :brake drums -65 and 68 and, at the sametime, preventing the operator .from actuating both brakessimultaneously.

. Feed adjustment remain stationary; hence, the :feed to :the'g'an'g saw-is zerogdespite the ."fact that pulley 50 'is'rotating. fThebrake bands:92 andx-93 are assumed to be intheir normal, inoperative position,namely, lifted offtheabrakedrums 65 and -68, as clearlyindicatedrinifiigs. 3. and-.4. Thus r-shaft :63 with itsf'br'ake idrumz'tfi. and hevel geanBZ;randg'sl'eeve .34 *witnabeveh-gear E'haildassociatedfbrakez'drum 68, will be free to rotate together atither-s'ame.spe'edszandimthe.isamezidirec ioni'as pulley-fill,be-

cause bevel gear Si is in mesh with bevel gears 61 and 62. It should benoted that bevel gear BI, being fast to spindle 51, partakes of anyrotary movement of housing 50 but does ordinarily not rotate around itsown axis. However, by retarding or stopping one of the brake drums 65 or68, the eccentricity of slide 33 may be increased or decreased, asdesired. As mentioned before, shaft 63 and sleeve 64 rotate normally atthe same speed and in the same direction as pulley 50 due to the meshingbevel gears GI, 62, and 61.

Bevel gears 62 and 6'! will, therefore, be caused to turn around theirown axes at the speed of pulley 58. Bevel gear 6|, on the other hand,has normally no rotation around its own axis and is furthermoreprevented from unintended rotation by the clamping surfaces TI, 18, I9,and 80 of the slide 33, as previously described. However, as soon as,let us say, bevel gear 62 is prevented from rotating or retarded in itsrotation around its own axis by applying a braking action to brake drum65, bevel gear Bl will respond by a compensating rotation in onedirection and thus accomplish the desired eccentric displacement ofslide 33. Similarly, when bevel gear 61 is stopped or retarded by abraking action on brake drum 68, bevel gear 6| will be forced to rotatein the respective opposite direction and cause the slide 33 to bedisplaced accordingly.

Th length of the chain or belt driving the drum 26 may obviously bealtered with negligible expense. The lengths of the chains, ropes, orother means for applying the brakes may also be changed with ease. Theapplication of standardized feed control units to the most variedequipment is, therefore, rendered practical.

In addition, the mutually exclusive action of the double crank leversafeguards the feed control device by preventing the operator fromaccidentally applying both brakes simultaneously.

The eccentricity of the adjustable slide may be varied in infinite stepsfrom zero to a maximum, and the feed control device may be adapted toimpart one or two feeding impulses to the sash of the gang saw or anyother equipment requiring a similar feed which must be adjusted while inoperation.

While I have shown and described, by way of example, mechanism forattaining the stated objects, I wish to have it understood that variouschanges or modifications may be made within the scope of the claimshereto attached without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described my invention I claim:

1. In an adjustable feed control device, a drum adapted to serve as ahousing, driving means contacting the peripheral surface of said drumfor rotating said drum in synchronism with the operation of a machine, aslide associated with said drum for producing a crank motion; adjustablemeans for changing the eccentric throw of said slide while said drum isrotating including normally inoperative braking means and manuallyoperable means for applying said braking means to actuate said throwadjusting means to selectively increase or decrease the eccentric throwof said slide; said slide having adjustable frictional clamping surfacesfor subjecting said slide to a predetermined frictional resistance tomaintain said slide in position when said throw adjusting means areinoperative, and an indicator rod operably connected wth said slide forindicating the magnitude of the eccentric throw of the latter.

' 2. A feed control device according to claim 1,

in combination with two ratchet mechanisms operatively connected withsaid slide and adapted to impart two feeding impulses to the feedingmechanism of a machine for each revolution of said drum.

3. In a mechanism for intermittently actuating the feed of a machine,feed control means comprising a housing adapted to serve as a pulley,driving means for rotating said housing in synchronism with theoperation of the machine, a slide radially adjustable in said housingfor producing a crank motion and having frictional clamping surfacesincluding adjustable means for subjecting said slide to a predetermineddegree of frictional resistance at all times, adjustable stroke controlmeans for displacing said slide while said feed control means isrotating, two one-way clutch devices operatively connected with saidslide and adapted to impart two feeding impulses to the feed of themachine during each revolution of said feed control means, said one-wayclutch devices being adapted to alternately lock the feed againsttorsional spring-back during part of their operating cycle.

4. In mechanisms for progressively feeding the reciprocating sash frameof stone cutting saws towards the work material, a feed control devicecomprising, a rotatable pulley adapted to serve as a housing, means forrotating said pulley in synchronism with the reciprocating sash frame, aslide associated with said pulley for producing a crank motion, aspindle in threaded engagement with said slide for displacing said slideeccentrically, a pair of drive shafts rotatably mounted substantially atright angles to said spindle, meshing bevel gears carried by saidspindle and by said pair of drive shafts, normally inoperative brakingmeans associated with said pair of drive shafts including means forselectively applying a braking action to retard the rotation of eitherone of said drive shafts, thereby causing a compensating rotation ofsaid spindle in either one of two directions with a consequent increaseor decrease in the eccentricity of said slide while said pulley isrotating, adjustable friction surfaces for maintaining said slide in itsadjusted position, and two ratchet devices operatively connected withsaid slide for imparting two consecutive feeding impulses during eachrevolution of said pulley for feeding the sash frame towards the workmaterial.

5. In a mechanism for imparting intermittently two feeding impulsesduring each cycle of a machine, a housing adapted to serve as a pulley,a sleeve secured to said housing, means for rotatably supporting saidsleeve, means for rotating said housing with its associated sleeve insynchronism with the operation of the machine, a slide associated withsaid housing for producing a crank motion, a spindle located within saidhousing and in threaded engagement with said slide for displacing saidslide eccentrically when said spindle is rotated with respect to saidslide, adjustable friction surfaces on said slide adapted to permitdisplacement of said slide when acted upon by said spindle but normallymaintaining said slide ina fixed position with respect to said housing,a second sleeve rotatably mounted inside said first sleeve, a shaftrotatably disposed within said second sleeve, driving means secured tosaid second sleeve and to said shaft, other driving means secured tosaid spindle and cooperating with said first-mentioned driving means tonormally rotate said shaft and said second sleeve at the same speed assaid housing, selectively op- 0 REFERENCES CITED The followingreferences are of record in the file of this patent:

Number UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Foerster Apr. 20, 1886 JenkinsonJuly 19, 1887 Williams June 10, 1890 Grimm June 2, 1896 Meishke-Smith eta1. July 28, 1903

